Sled attachment for vehicles.



G. F. BLODGETT.

SLED ATTACHMENT FOR VEHICLES.

APPLICATION TILED JUNE 4, 1010.

Patented May 23, 1911.

79 awuemioz marlwffiiadgezz. QM/mm #3 77 24, w w w CHARLES F. BLODGETT, OF BUCHANAN, MICHIGAN.

SLED ATTACHMENT FOR VEHICLES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 23, 1911.

Application filed June 4, 1910. Serial No. 565,008.

' To all whom 'it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES F. Bnonen'r'r, a citizen of the United States, residing at Buchanan, in the county of Berrien and State of Michigan, have invented new and useful Improvements in Sled Attachments for Vehicles, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in sled attachments for wheeled vehicles and is particularly intended for use with baby carriages.

One object of the invention is the provision of a pair of sleigh runners having an improved means connecting the said runners with the running gear of the carriage so that the said runners may be lowered to points below the bearing surfaces of the wheels when it is desired to convert a carriage into a sleigh.

Another object is the provision of a connecting rod adapted to automatically look when the runners are in raised position so as to prevent accidental lowering of the runners.

With these and other objects in view, which will more fully hereinafter appear, the present invention consists in certain novel details of construction and arrangement of parts, hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims; it being understood that various changes in the form, proportion, size, and minor details of the device may be made, within the scope of the appended claims, without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of the specification ;-Figure 1 is a per spective view of the running gear of a baby carriage provided with my improved attachment. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the same. Fig. 3 is a sectional end view on the line 33 of Fig. 2.

Similar numerals of reference are employed to designate corresponding parts throughout.

The wheels are designated by the numeral 5, the axles by the numeral 6 and the spaced bars by the numeral 7 Since both runners and their connections to the bars 7 are identical a description of one runner and its connections will be sulficient. Depending from the opposite end portion of each of the bars 7 are guide members designated by the numerals 8 and 9. These members are preferably formed of single pieces of sheet metal and extend to points below the hubs of the wheels and have their marginal longitudinal side portions turned over one face, as shown at 10, thus providing channeled guides. The runners are each shown to be formed of single pieces of angle iron the opposite sides of which are designated by the numerals 11 and 12, the side 12 of each runner bearing on the ground, while the opposite side extends vertically upward. Rising from the opposite end portions of the vertical side 12 of each runner are a pair of uprights 13 and 14, each of these uprights being preferably formed of a single piece of sheet metal oblong in contour and rectangular in cross section and of a size to slidingly fit in its respective guide.

By reference now to the drawings it will be seen that the sides 10 of the guides are unequal in length and formed adjacent to the upper ends of the longer sides are slots. Slidingly fitted in the slots of each pair of guides is an operating bar or connecting rod 15, corresponding approximately in length to the length of either runner. Connection between the opposite end portions of each of the operating bars or connecting rods and medial portions of the uprights is estab lished by means of links 16 and 17, the opposite ends of which are pivoted to the uprights and connecting rod. The links are of such length that when they extend vertically downward the runners will be positioned below the bearing points of the wheels 5, so that when the operating rods are moved in one direction the links will raise the runners above the bearing points of the wheels. In order to prevent downward movement of the runners after the latter have been raised the operating bars or connecting rods are adjacent to one end and on their lower sides provided with notches 18, which are adapted to receive the lower ends of the slots in the guides, whereby endwise movement of the operating bars or connecting rods will be prevented. In order to permit the major portions of the bodies of the links to move over the shorter sides 10 of the guides, washers or bushings 19 are interposed between the lower end portions of the links and uprights. The upper end portions of the links, however, are offset inwardly as shown at 20 and bear directly on the operating bars or connecting rods so that when the links depend vertically downward these ofi'set portions will abut against the longer sides of the inturned portions 10 of the guides thus preventing movement of the links in one direction.

In bringing the device into use from the positionshown in Fig. 2 to that shown in Fig. 1, the end portions of the connecting rods 15provided with the notches are moved upwardly until the notches clear the end walls of the slots in the inturned portions of the guides, after. which the connecting rods 15 are moved longitudinally until the links 16 and 17 assume vertical positions and move the runners below the bearing points of the wheels as shown in Fig. 1. It will be observed when the parts are in these positions the weight of the vehicle will be throw onto the connecting rods 15 through the links 16 and 17 and runners; Inasmuch as the connecting rods are slidingly fitted in the slots it will be manifest that the upper sides of the connecting rods will, under the weight of the vehicle bind on the upper ends of the slots sufiiciently to prevent endwise movement of the connecting rods and owing to the fact that the uprights l3 and 14: are nicely fitted in the guides so as to prevent perceptible lateral movement it is evident when the runners are sliding over snow or ice-covered ground that the inability of the rods 15 to move endwise and the uprightsto move laterally will prevent upward movement of the runners.

From the foregoing, it is evident that I have provided a device which is comparatively simple in structure and inexpensive in manufacture, embodying few parts and these so arranged that the danger of derangement will be reduced to a minimum I claim i 1. The combination with a running gear of a vehicle; of a plurality of channeled guides depending from said running gear and extending to points adjacent to the surface of the ground, a pair of runners, uprights at the opposite end portions of said runners slidingly fitted in said guides, connecting rods slidingly fitted in openings formed in said guides and above said runners, and links having their opposite end portions pivoted to said runners and connecting rods.

2. In a sled attachment for carriages the combination with a running gear of a carriage and a sled runner; of a channeled guide depending from the running gear, an upright connected to the said runner and slidingly fitted in the guide, a connecting rod slidingly fitted in the guide above the runner, and a link having one end pivoted to the upright and its opposite end offset and pivoted to the connecting rod and adapted to abut against the guide and limit movement of the connecting rod and runner in one direction.

3. In a sled attachment for vehicles the combination with a running gear of a vehicle; a sled runner, a pair of channeled guides depending from the running gear,

uprights connected with the runners and slidingly fitted in the guides, a connecting rod slidingly fitted in openings in the guides above the runners and provided on one side with a notch to receive the end of one of said openings, and link connections between said connecting rod and uprights.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES F. BLODGETT.

WVitnesses EDGAR HAM, BUReEss MILEs.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

' Washington, D. C. 

